My passion is nutrition and Rx Muscle readers, IFBB Pros and my colleagues know that. Typically, I don’t write too much about training because I find nutrition so much more interesting. Joe Weider, in the late 1980’s, told me to keep writing nutrition articles – so I did. I knew Joe wouldn’t “give me the wrong advices.” He always wanted to save training articles for the IFBB Pros to write. It was for those two reasons you rarely saw a training article written by me. Joe knew that the public wanted the big-time bodybuilders to explain how they grow and lift that heavy-ass weight; while people like me delivered the diet stuff. He always used to tell me, “Chris, explain the stuff to the readers in a way that they can understand it. Pretend you are talking to kindergarteners” That was how I wrote my articles and it worked. There is a very wide spectrum of people who read my articles, everyone from IFBB Pros to people going to the gym for the first time in their lives. In the spirit of Joe’s advice, so everyone can understand what I am writing, I will continue writing like that. Keep that in mind when you are reading my articles for the next couple months as they will be training articles. If you guys want follow-up, ask me the questions on the boards and I will do my best to answer – and if I can’t answer it, I’ll just make some shit up… Just kidding.
When I go to shows, the dazzling amount of misinformation and crazy-pseudo-voodoo stuff never ceases to amaze me. People always run stuff by me, and for the most part, I try to pretend that I am not in shock. Whether it is a nutty diet or bizarre training routine, I always tell myself, “Keep it simple. The best results are always a product of mastering the basics and repeating them correctly, over and over.” While this article may not be “sexy” enough for a lot of people, it is a fantastic foundation that will cause muscles to grow. These are my top 9 things you need to do to grow. Here’s something sexy for you guys, I call them Chris’ Best Tips – 9. Oh my God! The short form will be CBT-9. Sexy!
1) The Form. Good form promotes real growth. The technique/execution of the exercise is the foundation upon which all other training variables are based. If your form is poor, CBT 2-8 are obsolete. Good form places and maintains stress upon the muscle being worked leading to muscle growth. With poor form, the stress is removed from the muscle being targeted and placed on other muscles.
2) The Weight. Although bodybuilders have to consider factors such as reps, sets, rest periods and technique; the weight used is the single greatest factor contributing to the recruitment of muscle. In simple words, the weight you use is the main factor that brings about muscle growth. Not sure about that? Is it surprising that Ronnie Coleman is the strongest bodybuilder around. Or that Bev Francis, once the world’s strongest woman, set new standards in terms of muscle development. Both Ronnie and Bev are proof that serious size is a result of training with heavy weights. The greater the weight, the greater the stressed placed on the muscle. The more you can stress the muscle, the greater the muscle growth. With all that in mind, don’t forget CBT #1, maintain good form!
3) Speed. Someone just asked me at the Dallas Pro show about slow-motion training. I’ll tell you the same thing I told him, it’s a guaranteed method to keep you puny. ‘Super slow” training – where the athlete moves the weight at a very slow speed is sometimes touted as a viable way to maximize growth. In my humble opinion, that idea is completely wrong. For real growth, you’ll want to do the opposite; to move the weight you are using with great speed. Here’s why; Muscles are comprised of tiny units called muscle fibers. Muscle fibers are recruited or “come into play” in response to how much weight you use. When Ronnie Coleman uses 700 pounds while squatting, he recruits a heck of a lot more individual muscle fibers in the quads than sets with 300 or 400 pounds. The greater the poundage, the greater number of muscle fibers that come into play which translates into greater growth.
Outside of the weight, the speed at which you move that weight influences the recruitment or inclusion of muscle fibers. The faster you move the weight in good form – the greater the muscle fiber recruitment. Let’s use Ronnie as an example. When he uses 700 pounds, he recruits more muscle fibers than when he squats with 400 or 500 pounds. The greater weight causes a greater inclusion of muscle fibers. However, imagine Ronnie Squatting with 600 pounds and coming out of the contracted position where his knees are fully bent with great aggression, speed and intensity. Compare that explosive technique with a set where he uses the same weight, but comes out of the contracted position in a slow, methodical way – lacking speed and aggression. Which one recruits more muscle fibers? The squat where Ronnie comes out of the contracted position with greater speed. Why? Besides good form and heavy poundage, the speed at which you move a weight effects the recruitment of muscle fibers. Maintain good form, use heavy weights and move the weight with an aggressive speed and you’ll recruit the greatest amount of muscle fibers possible.
4) Rest Periods. Since were talking about building as much mass as possible, we have to address how long one should wait in between sets. As a rule of thumb, you should rest long enough for the heart rate to come back – or close to – resting levels. An easy way to illustrate the importance of resting is to take a look at squats. If Ronnie Coleman can squat 600 pounds for 8 reps, we can expect his heart rate to radically increase as he approaches failure, or rep number 8. With basic exercises using larger body parts, the heart rate increases dramatically as the individual approaches muscular failure. If your trying to build mass, you should wait until the heart rate returns close to normal. If Ronnie attempted to perform a second set of 8 reps using 600 pounds, he might not be able to perform much more than 3-4 reps if he does not rest long enough in between sets. That’s because an elevated heart rate can prevent an individual from truly approaching real muscular failure. Since using heavy weights and approaching muscle failure is so vital in building mass, it makes sense to rest long enough to allow the heart rate to decrease so you can take sets to muscular failure. For any body part, an individual should wait until his heart rate decreases back to a level that is closer to normal. As a rule, training larger body parts increases the heart rate much more than training smaller body parts. Larger body parts require 2-4 minutes rest in between sets, sometimes even more. Ronnie can’t wait only 2 minutes in between 600 pound squats and 400 pound bent rows. He just can’t. His heart rate gets racing so fast that he needs at least 4 minutes to allow it to return to normal before performing a second set. Smaller body parts require 1-2 minutes rest between sets. If you keep your rest periods too short, the poundage you use drops (remember that poundage is a huge influence on muscle growth).
Chris Note: Sorry Ronnie, I have to use you as the example because your name is synonymous with unbelievable size.
5) Rep Range. Low reps or high reps? The best range is actually somewhere in the middle. When a bodybuilder performs less than 6 reps, the training adaptation is to experience gains in muscle strength. Sure, the bodybuilders performing low reps such as 3-5 rep sets will add some size. Unfortunately, low rep training will cause increases in strength with only small increases in muscle mass. That is great if you are a strength athlete, but not so much if you are a bodybuilder.
On the other hand, a rep range greater than 12 causes training adaptation where the bodybuilder will mainly experience gains in muscle endurance. Sure, 15 to 20 rep sets can cause some mild increases in muscle size. Unfortunately, high rep sets increase blood flow to the muscle which is not a strong stimulus for adding new muscle mass. It is great if you are an endurance athlete or a MMA fighter, but not great for the bodybuilder.
The ideal rep range for adding mass is between 6 reps and 12 reps. This range where the bodybuilder can experience gains in strength and, more importantly, gains in size.
6) Splits. I am not talking about doing the splits. We’ll save that stuff for Jean Claude Van Damme in Time Cop. Ow.
There’s so many ways to split up your routine – to group the body parts. I don’t think there are dramatic advantages to combining certain body parts versus combining other body parts another way. For example, you can train chest and triceps on the same day or chest and back. Personal preferences and your focus on which muscle group you hope to develop may influence which body parts you group together. However, for the most part, the way you combine body parts is a secondary factor in training.
The big issue in terms of splitting routines is deciding how many times a week to train. In my opinion, 4 to 5 training days a week is the optimal amount of training sessions one can withstand before the body shifts from an anabolic state to an overtraining and catabolic state. While training and a caloric surplus is the stimulus that helps the body increase its levels of growth hormone, testosterone and IGF which support muscle development, too much training – especially training too often with too few days of rest – cause growth hormone, testosterone, and IGF levels to drop preventing gains in mass. Simply, training causes growth but training too often actually prevents you from growing. The solution is to take a day off after every two consecutive days of training. In general, the body can only withstand 2 consecutive days of hardcore training before it begins to slip into a state of overtraining. Therefore, for most bodybuilders the 2 day on, 1 day off split works best at preventing the body from overtraining.
7) Order. Bodybuilders often ask, “What order should I train my chest, back, or [insert random body part here].” The answer is straightforward, on any given body part, start with exercise which you are strongest on and proceed from there. For example, a bodybuilder should start with bench press for chest as any bodybuilder will be able to use dramatically more weight on this exercise than on flyes, pec dec or even incline bench press. Since your strength is greatest at the beginning of the workout and diminishes as the workout progresses, it makes sense to place those exercises which you are strongest on towards the beginning of the workout. If you perform pec dec, flyes and inclines before performing the bench press, you’ll have to use considerably less weight on the bench press compared to having started with the bench press. We know “how much” weight you use is a huge factor on growth so starting with those exercises that you are strongest with will lead to greater growth.
8) Variety. Bodybuilders often talk about using a variety of exercises to promote gains in mass. Fact is, the above factors such as form, weight, speed, rest periods, splits and order are more important than adding all kinds of variety in the training program. However, you can change angles of exercises ever so slightly to create a different pattern of muscle fiber recruitment which can help in stimulating the muscle. The mistake many make is to create training exercises that – look “hi tech” or advanced but are not. Instead of focusing on the basic exercises, they stray from them for – what they believe to be – a more advanced exercise. Unfortunately, the truth is, the basics or small variations of the basics are the small changes that can help add mass. For example, an individual can alternate from bench presses to dumbbell bench presses or from squats to front squats. Both exercises are, more or less, the same with only slight changes in the angle of stress.
9) Time off. Bodybuilders hoping to pack on mass can’t train every day. You need rest days, usually 1 full day of rest, after having trained for 2 consecutive days to aid in recovery and recuperation. Over time, training exerts an effect where the body actually loses its ability to fully recover. While the day off helps in recovery, it takes time-off, a period of 4 to 7 days of no training at all helps the body fully recover and rest enough to help you to continue to add muscle mass. I suggest bodybuilders take a full week off after every 6 to 8 weeks of training. This period helps the body heal fully from the grueling effects of training and it is only when the body is 100% rested that it can respond to your training with added growth. A lot of bodybuilders end up fatigued and tired after only 6 to 8 weeks of really hard training. It is this fatigue and lack of 100% recovery that prevents many bodybuilders from making big gains in mass.
In summation, a bodybuilder that hopes to maximize muscle gains needs to pay attention to the basics. CBT-9 is a fantastic compilation of basics that bodybuilders should pay close attention to.
To order Chris books go to www.amazon.com to order his supplements visit www.procardnutrition.com
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